Cedric Morris (1889 – 1982) was a Welsh artist who painted plants – showy, colour drenched, often densely packed, floral arrangements. He was also a plantsman, cultivating a garden in Suffolk where he bred thousands of irises. His painting Iris Seedlings (1943) held by the Tate, no doubt inspired by the latter pursuit. He was …
American born Daniel Ridgway Knight (1839 – 1924) painted women outdoors surrounded by a diverse array of plants, many in flower, always beautiful. The women are interesting, but they are there of course to draw our attention to the main attraction. Tending The Garden Tending The Garden (detail) Spring Blossoms Picking Wildflowers The Rose Garden …
Below is a selection of plant-inspired cover designs from recent fiction releases by some inspired contemporary artists. Underneath those are more artworks, from older books, mostly non-fiction, taken from the fabulous Pinterest board of João Henriques. Landmarks by Robert Macfarlane, Hamish Hamilton. Cover by Stanley Donwood Weathering by Lucy Wood, Bloomsbury Publishing. Cover by Greg Heinimann The Betrayers by …
Botanical accuracy should always be our aim, but if we fall short, there’s no real shame in it, well, only a little. When someone corrects us it’s important to show humility and thank them. They will feel good. Mis-identifying plants is very common because it’s difficult to know the names of 350,000 flowering plants in the …
Fiona McIntyre is a painter, drawer and printmaker. Her uplifting painting Greenish Deep is currently on show as part of the group exhibition Arboretum at the Royal West of England Academy, now entering its final week. Much of her work focuses on plants, often using vivid colour and flow to depict their great vitality. Artist’s website I …
Happy St David’s Day. Where would the UK be without beautiful Wales. To celebrate, more daffodils and leeks in art. The Welsh for leek is cenhinen and the Welsh for daffodil is cenhinen Pedr which translates to Peter’s leek. It is thought that the latter was adopted as a second national emblem by accident, as over …
Daffodils are out in London. Let’s celebrate. Daffodils are the common name for plants in the genus Narcissus in the amaryllis (Amaryllidaceae) family. These two names are often used interchangeably, but in the UK we usually use daffodil to mean the completely yellow variety with the extended trumpet flower head. If you want to buy …
Artwork by Ingrid Cole who recently moved to the steampunk town of Oamaru.
A garden can help with relaxation and inner peace, but if you don’t have a garden to hand, or the garden you do have is too cold and wet right now, then a good alternative is a garden to colour-in. The book Secret Garden by Johanna Basford has sold over a million copies worldwide and …
Italian painter Nicola Simbari (1927-2012) translated the energy, vitality and brilliance of plants onto canvas with a palette knife. Grasses, trees, bouquets, fruit – plants as the main subject or as decorative appendage to equally colourful women or landscapes – both draw the eye and steal the show. These artworks are a tonic for a …